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Covid-19

Rosatom to sterilise 58m medical masks


Published : 05 Apr 2020 09:06 PM | Updated : 06 Sep 2020 10:20 AM

Amid the global coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, Sterion, a part of Rusatom Healthcare, has signed a contract with Delrus to sterilize more than 58 million medical masks using radiation, Russian state atomic energy corporation Rosatom said.

Sterion is a concern of Rusatom Healthcare created by Rosatom in collaboration of a private investor while Delrus supplies sterile masks to Russian medical facilities, Rosatom said in a statement.

It said Sterion has already processed first batch of 92,000 masks. The enterprise is now working round-the-clock, which enables it to sterilise up to 10 million marks per week.

Masks need to be sterilised before use because their inner lining comes in contact with users' mucous membranes, it read.
According to Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev, sterilisation using radiation technology ensures that medical equipment are processed safely and efficiently, which is especially important during ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the statement added.

Alexander Shibanov, CEO of Rusatom Healthcare informed that “Other Rosatom and non-Rosatom enterprises involved in the sterilisation of medical devices have already been enlisted in this endeavor.”

Sterion specialises in sterilising medical supplies using specialised equipment- Linear Electron Accelerator.
Sterilisation is achieved by targeting medical products loaded onto a conveyor belt with a beam of accelerated electrons. It allows for effective and safe sterilisation of medical supplies without the need to unpack them from the shipping containers.

As of Sunday, the novel coronavirus (Covid-19), first reported in China, has so far infected more than 1,202,000 people around the world, according to worldometer. The global death toll from virus neared 65,000.